Radio-phonograph combination



Jan. 2, 1951 BERRY 2,536,123

RADIO-PHONOGRAPH COMBINATION Filed April 19, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 4 I 1 INVENTOR i 75 fiO/mdii 13677;?

ATTORNEY Jan. 2, 1951 BERRY 2,536,123

RADI 0 PHONOGRAPH COMBINATI 0N Filed April 19, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR 7707 77??? 9. B67719 BY Q ATTORNEY Jan. 2, 1951 N. F. BERRY 2,536,123

RADIO-PHONOGRAPH COMBINATION Filed April 19, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR 7/0777Za77 5." 6773 ATTORNEY Jan. 2, 1951 BERRY 2,536,123

RADIO-PHONOGRAPH COMBINATION I Filed April 19, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR A'ITORNEY Jan. 2, 1951 N. F. BERRY 2,536,123

RADIO-PHONOGRAPH COMBINATION Filed April 19, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 A'ILTORNEY Patented Jan. 2, 1 951 UNITED STATES. PATENT OFFICE RADIO -'PHON0 GRAPH CUMBINATIQN Norman EMT-Berry, Buffalo, N. Y., assignortoiCnlonialR-adio Corporati n, -Bufialo,IN.X.

Application Apr-i119, 1945,Serial'N 0.589216 the -so-cal1ed'"slicer type, in which the records to "be played are supported in a stack on the spindle above the turntable and dropped one at a time by rotary knife-like arrangements which go into the stack 'of-records and drop the bottom one.

In order to load a "machine of "this type, the operator must select records of the same size, must discard warped records and those with badly chipped edges, must see that the slicers are 'set in the correct position and adjusted for "the diameter of record being used, and must then place the records in position on the spindle, resting on the slicers. usually carried out blind because when the record is over the spindle, the latter is hidden, and -the records must bemoved about toregister the hole with the spindle.

=While these operations can all be performed by one accustomed to 'doing them, they are tedious and time consuming, and are somewhat diflicult for an inexperienced person, and particularly difiicult for children. Failure to properly set and load the machine may result in breakage-of records or even damage to'themechanism. All of these difficulties are elim'inatedby the record changer in accordance with my invention, which requires no adjustment from one size record "to another, will play a mixture of tenand twelve-inch records selected at random, and which may be loaded without feeling for registry of spindle and center hole, without any-particular skill or attention on the part of the operator, and without the possibility of incorrect loading or improper operation, with resultant damage 'to' -the-machineor to the records.

Among the objects of my invention may be mentioned the following:

To provide an automatic record changer mechanism in which the care, attention, and time of the operator, heretofore necessary in selecting and placing records :in the magazine, is eliminated or reduced.

To provide mechanism of the class described One of the most This latter operation is I.

which will play tenand twelve-inch record's mixed in -'a random manner.

To provide such -mechanism which will feed tenand twelve-inch records, mixed at random, from the'magazine into'playing position .one at a time, without requiring-the adjustment of any zcntrola-nd without-requiring'mechanismfor determining the size of the record next to 'be "fed.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide such mechanism so constructed and arranged that carelessness in loading it will not resultin-faulty or improper operation, or damage to the machine or records.

Itis-a further object of this invention to provide apparatus of the class described in which the mechanism relatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture.

Still other objects and advantages of ,inyinvention'will be apparent from the specification.

The "features of novelty which "I believe to "be characteristic 'of'my invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. My invention itself, howevenboth as to its fundamental principles and as to its particular embodiments, will best 'beunderstood'by reierencc'to thespeciflcation and accompanying drawing, 'in which Fi 1 is a perspective view of a cabinet containing an automatic record changeriinlaccordance with my invention,

Fig. -2 is 'a vertical section or the apparatus shown in Fig. 1

Figs. .3 and 4 are top plan views of thechanger mechanism itself, Fig. '3 showing the apparatus with the record-feeding mechanism at rest; that is to say, in the p sit on it would be whil a r o d b ng p a ed. .an'clfE g- 41 sh wing t e mechanism the position in which it 'is abOlllt to deliver a twelve-inch record to the turntable,

'Figs.'5, 6, and 7 are enlarged vertical sections ou h thefeed mechanism, F 5 sh wing the mechanism droppinga twelve-inch recordon the turntable, takenonlineS-fiof Fig.3, Fig. 6 show.- ing the mechanism in the ,position it has a few moments after ,having dropped the twelve-inch record as shown in 'Eig. ,5,,,and Fig. 7 showing the mechanism in the position it occupies in Fig.3,

Fig. 8 is a plan view similar to Figs. .3 audit, but showing the mechanism about to deliver ,a ten-inch record to the turntable,

Fig. 9 is a sectional view similar to Figs. 5 to :51, an showing th 'inechanism in th nosition it occupies in delivering the "last record, herein shown as a teneincb record, :from the magazine to the turntable,

Fig. is a sectional elevation on lines I0l0 of Fig. 9,

Figs. 11 and 12 are enlarged detail views of the record pusher engaging a twelve-inch record (Fig. 11), and a ten-inch record (Fig. 12),

Figs. 13, 14, and 15 are detail sectional views on lines l3l3 and i4-l4 of Fig. 11, and l5-l5 of Fig. 12, respectively, and

Fig. 16 is a chart showing the pusher travel plotted against degrees of cam rotation or time.

In order to operate the mechanism in accordance with my invention, the desired number of records is placed in the magazine one after another in the order in which they are to be played. Tenand twelve-inch records may be intermingled in a random manner and the operator need make no adjustment of the machine, nor need he take particular care in placing the records.

After the magazine is loaded with the desired number and assortment of records, the machine may be placed in operation as by pushing a starting button. When this occurs, a slider, or pusher, engages the bottom record of the stack in the magazine and pushes it laterally until the center hole registers with the turntable spindle, at

which point the record drops into position on the turntable.

While this is occurring, or previously, the pickup arm is moved awayfrom the turntable to allow the record to drop into playing position, and after the record is on the turntable the cycling mechanism moves the pick-up to playing position and lowers it to play the record, the changing mechanism then remaining out of operation until the first record is completely played, or until a rejector button is operated to drop the next record.

On the next cycling operation the pusher engages the bottom record of the stack, which was previously the next to bottom record of the stack, and pushes this sideways until the center hole of the record registers with the turntable spindle, whereupon the second record drops to playing position and the pusher returns to its rest position. The pick-up which was previously lifted and carried away from the turntable is now returned and dropped in playing position on the record, which will then be played. The operation so described continues until the last record in the magazine has been dropped and played and, there being no more records to play, the machine may shut itself off after the record is finished or alternatively, if desired, continue to repeat the last record.

, Referring now more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the phonograph mechanism may be installed in housing H], which may also contain radio receiver l3 and loud-speaker l4, playing through grille 12. Radio dial and escutcheon plate I I may be mounted on hinges at the lower edge and may be swung to open position, as indicated in Fig. 2, to uncover an opening in the front sloping portion of the cabinet through which the records may be placed in the magazine or removed from the turntable l6 after playing. In accordance with the usual practice, stylus 20 may operate electric pick-up IS, the output of which may be delivered to the audio amplifier portion of the radio receiver to be played by loud-speaker M;

' The turntable l6 and record-feeding mechanism may be mounted on end plates IS in the space above and back of the radio chassis and with the plane of the turntable at an angle to the horizontal. In the preferred form, as shown herein, the plane of the turntable slopes down and to the rear. The angle which this plane makes with the horizontal is not critical, and in general will be somewhere between thirty and sixty degrees, as may be found to be most satisfactory for any particular design.

Pick-up I9 (or its supporting arm) may be pivoted at its rear end on supporting plate [5 in any suitable manner which will permit the arm to swing in and out over the turntable and also to move in a vertical direction over the necessary travel distance. The turntable may be driven in any suitable manner from driving motor 39, shown in dotted lines, as, for instance, by a belt engaging the periphery of the turntable and a driving pulley on the motor shaft.

The motor may also drive the cycling mechanism, diagrammatically indicated as 40, which causes rotation of cam 23 (Fig. 3) carried by shaft 22, whenever a change of records is required. Any suitable mechanism for causing cycling operation when pick-up arm l9 reaches the end of a record may be employed; and since the same is per se not a part of my invention, it is not shown or described in detail.

When the records are placed in the magazine as shown in Fig. 2, their position is determined by the two posts 33 and 34, undercut as at 35 and 36 (Figs. 3 and 10), for a purpose which will be explained later, and by platform 2|, on which these posts 33 and 34 are mounted, these supportin the lower edge of the record. The bottom record is also supported by the top of turntable spindle ll, as will be clear from Fig. 2, posts 33 and 3G and spindle I! being at the apexes of a triangle, and the bottom record lying with its center hole downwardly offset from spindle l1, regardless of whether it is a tenor twelve-inch record.

Once the first record has been properly positioned, as already described, additional records may be dropped on top of it one at a time, and these will slide down to the proper position and come to rest without any attention on the part of the operator, even though the records may be placed to the right or left of center. It will be noted that posts 33 and 34 carry outwardlyextending wings 3'! and 38, the record-engaging faces of these wings being substantially vertical, as will be observed from Fig. 2. From this it will be seen that as a stack of records is built up in the magazine, the stack becomes offset in that its axis is vertical rather than parallel with spindle I 1.

It will now be observed that delivery of the records one at a time from the magazine to the turntable may be effected by pushing the bottom record of the stack toward the front of the machine until the center hole of the record reg isters with spindle l1, whereupon the record, having cleared platform or table 2|, will drop t the turntable.

It will also be observed that, since the records are indexed by the edge of wings 3'! and 38, a ten-inch record will have to be pushed a greater distance than a twelve-inch record. This pushing is done by slider 24 (Fig. 3) which has a thickness no greater than'the thickness of one record and is driven by cam 23, which in turn is operated by motor 39 through the cyclin mechanism.

Pusher 24 may be mounted upon block 29 against which cam 23 bears, and it may be spring-biased to rear position, as by springs 21 and 28. It may slide within rails 25 and 26, which serve to retain it in position and prevent twisting or turning. The operating face of the pusher which lies inthe plane of the record to be pushed is preferably made with curve 32 (Figs. 11 and 12) having a five-inch radius centered on the center line of the pusher, which intersects the turntable spindle Below the lower surface of pusher 24 there is secured ledge plate 30, which also has a curved edge as at 3!, but with a six-inch radius instead of a five-inch radius, so that, as will be clear from Figs. 13 and 15, a small ledge is formed below pusher 2'4, the two curves 3| and 32 intersecting at or near the outside edges of the pusher. The purpose of the ledge is to prevent the last record in the magazine, if this happens to'be a ten-inch record,-from tilting while being delivered to the spindle and thereby possibly causing improper operation of the mechanism.

The contour of cam 23 is a matter of considerable importance since I have found an appreciable time is required for twelve-inch records to drop after the center hole registers with the spindle. This is because the pressure of the air on the under face of the record tends to hold it against the record above it until air flows in between the records from the edges.

Therefore, the cam is given a contour such that the pusher hesitates, or even moves slightly backward, for an appreciable time at the position in which the center hole of a twelve-inch record registers with the spindle. Preferably, this occurs from the 80 to the 120 angular position of the cam (Fig. 16). If this is not provided for, the twelve-inch record might not drop, or might start to drop and be jammed between the pusher and spindle with resultin damage to the record or machine, or both.

Further rotation of the cam then advances the pusher to the position where a ten-inch record registers with the spindle, which is reached at approximately 220 rotation. At this point the cam has advanced the pusher to its farthest point of travel and at about 220 the pusher begins to move backward under the action of retracting springs 27 and 28, and returns to the starting point at 360.

It will be observed that the pusher remains at the registry position for ten-inch records over approximately 20 rotation of the cam, and this pause is smaller than the pause for the twelveinch record.

It will be observed that when the pusher engages a twelve-inch record, contact is made between the two outer edges of the pusher and the edge of the record, and the edge of the record clears the ledge 30, as will be seen from Figs. 11 and 13. lfhere is no possibility of the record tilting if there are other records on top of it. If the last record in the magazine is a twelveinch record, it cannot tilt because at the position where it just clears the supporting table 29, its center hole has registered with the spindle and it is ready to drop.

However, if the last record happens to be a ten-inch record, this will clear the supporting table before the center hole has registered, and further pushing is necessary, and the record might tilt during this further pushing were it not for ledge 30. Therefore, ledge 30 is provided, supporting the edge of a ten-inch record, as shown in Figs. 12 and 15. Since curve 32 has a five-inch radius, a ten-inch record will fit exactly in this arc and make contact with the pusher over its entire width.

The undercutting of posts 33 and 34 at 35 and 35 helps to prevent tilting of the records when first engaged by the pusher, particularly when the number of records in the magazine is small. Such tilting might occur with a warped record if the posts were straight sided.

In order to stop the machine after the last record in the magazine has been played,. switch 40 may be provided. This may have fixed contactll and spring contact 42 operated by plunger 43 located within spindle ll, which is made hoilow for this'purpose. The tip of plunger 43 may. project slightly above the top of spindle ll so that when one or more records are in position in the magazine. switch 40 is closed, but when the last record drops, spring contact 42 moves away from fixed contact 4|, thereby preventing the operation of the cycling mechanism after the last record has been played, and turning. off the motor. Since circuits for accomplishing this are well known and form per se no part of this invention, they are not shown or described in detail.

Dial II will preferably be arranged so that opening and closing of the dial and escutcheon plate to change records does not damage the dial mechanism or interfere with its operation. One way in which this may be done is to provide a pointer driven by cords traveling over pulleys, the cords passing into the dial on the center line of hinge 34.

To eliminate the possibility of records being lifted over the top of posts 33 and 34 and being dropped behind them, shielding plate 4| may be provided within the cabinet to positively guide the edge of the record down into engagement with wings 31 and 38. This plate may be made of any suitable material such as light sheet metal or even substantial cardboard.

In the playing of the mixture of tenand twelve-inch records, the starting position of the stylus in engaging a record will naturally be different for the two sizes of records. Any suitable mechanism well known in the art may be used to control this position for this purpose. Since the same forms per se no part of this invention, it is not shown or described. One of the mechanisms which I may use for this purpose is that shown in the co-pending application of Scriven and Van Every, Serial No. 530,480, now Patent No. 2,504,596, granted April 18, 1950, assigned to the assignee of this application.

While I have shown and described certain preferred embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, as will be clear to those skilled in the art.

In the specification I have explained the principles of my invention and the best mode in which I have contemplated applying those principles, so as to distinguish my invention from other inventions; and I have particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed the part, improvement, or combination which I claim as my invention or discovery.

I claim:

1. In automatic record-changing mechanism, in combination, a housing, radio receiving and amplifying and sound reproducing equipment mounted within said housing, a phonograph mechanism mounted within said housing and having a pick-up connected with said amplifying apparatus whereby phonograph records may be played through said amplifier and sound reproducing apparatus, an opening in the front of said housing through which records may be placed on and removed from said phonograph mechanism, and a radio dial and escutcheon plate pivotally mounted to close said opening, but movable away from said opening to permit loading and unloading of said phonograph mechanism.

2. In automatic record-changing mechanism, in combination, a housing, radio receiving and amplifying and sound reproducing equipment mounted within said housing, a phonograph mechanism mounted. within said housing and having a pick-up connected with said amplifying apparatus whereby phonograph records may be played through said amplifier and sound reproducing apparatus, an opening in the front of said housing through which records may be placed on and removed from said phonograph mechanism, and a radio dial and escutcheon plate pivotally mounted to close said opening, but movable away from said opening to permit loading and unloading of said phonograph mechanism, and flexible connections between said radio apparatus and said dial in the form of cords passing through the axis of said pivotal mounting.

NORMAN F. BERRY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,514,897 French Nov. 11, 1924 1,966,576 Allen July 17, 1934 2,062,396 Carson Dec. 1, 1936 2,094,246 Soumala Sept. 28, 1937 2,247,171 Harman June 24, 1941 2,343,992- Morrison Mar. 14, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS N umber Country Date 513,216 Great Britain Oct. 6, 1939 699,379 Germany Nov. 28, 194i) 

